New fuel for Kolkata vehicles kolkata may soon become the first city in India to have vehicles running on methane if a deal between Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ongc), a private gas distribution company, and the West Bengal government goes through. ongc and Calcutta Compressions and Liquefaction Engineering, a Kolkata-based company, signed a memorandum of understanding on July 10

The eighth draft coal policy that emphasises immediate government-led action in coal sector to meet the country's surging energy demand is likely to be placed before the caretaker government's cabinet today.

The draft proposes to set up a "mine Bangla" in line with Petrobangla by 2010 to spearhead different mining schemes. This government body will take strategic partners from private sector through open tenders for quick development of the schemes.

DIVERSIFICATION PLAN Law Kumar Mishra | TNN Dhanbad: The public sector company Coal India Ltd has decided to enter into power production and has signed three MoUs with different electricty boards in Uttar Pradesh, Chatisgarh and Tamil Nadu for setting up 1000 megawatt capacity plants in the three states. However, the implementation of the power projects would be taken up after three years as CIL has resolved to concentrate on increasing coal production, CIL chairman, Partho S Bhattacharya told the TOI on Monday.

The Energy Division will send the draft coal policy to the Cabinet Division by tomorrow for its placement before the council of advisers for approval, after a delay by about two years and a half over various controversies, officials said.

It is difficult not to miss the irony.

There are 229 identified coal blocks for allocation to specified end users and government companies on display on the website of Ministry of Coal. Till May 2008, as many as 182 coal blocks have been allocated to eligible companies. So far, production has commenced only in 13 blocks.

The law ministry has pointed out that some sections of the draft coal policy would contradict the existing Mines and Mineral Rules 1968 and suggested amendment of the rules before approving the policy. A representative of the law ministry made the observation at an inter-ministry meeting on the draft coal policy, chaired by energy secretary Mohammad Mohsin at the Energy Division on Thursday, said sources present at the meeting.

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